Season to start despite riots

11 August 2011 11:00

Only one Premier League match this weekend will be postponed because of the riots after police gave the go-ahead for all games other than Tottenham v Everton to go ahead.

The Spurs match was called off on Thursday morning after the situation on Tottenham High Road was deemed to be too difficult to allow the game to go ahead. It was there that the unrest which has affected a number of cities first started on Saturday. The Football League have also stated that all their games will be going ahead

Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore said: "The Tottenham game is a real shame but we support the police in what they are doing. The police have done a fantastic job, but it's been a crime scene all week and the council have not had enough time to do what they need."

In the House of Commons, Prime Minister David Cameron said there had been talks over bringing forward the kick-off times for the remaining top-flight matches to avoid further trouble, but the Premier League later confirmed that all other games in the capital will go ahead as scheduled.

The league added in a statement: "The Premier League would like to thank the Metropolitan Police and all the other relevant police forces for their efforts and on-going communication during this difficult time. Acting on current information from the authorities there is no reason to believe that matches outside of London will be affected at this time."

Spurs defender Michael Dawson said the postponement was "disappointing".

He added: "We've worked for six weeks trying to get fit and now the first week's not going to be happening for us. But safety is the main thing, and the police wouldn't have called it off lightly."

Everton skipper Phil Neville said on Twitter he was "gutted" at the announcement but accepted it was "100% the right decision in the circumstances".

A Tottenham statement read: "Following ongoing discussions with the necessary authorities regarding this weekend's Premier League home match against Everton, it has now been confirmed that this fixture will be postponed due to safety concerns relating to the infrastructure of the High Road and access to the stadium caused by last Saturday's riots.

"We apologise for any inconvenience caused to supporters due to matters outside of the control of the club. We shall update fans on when this fixture will be rearranged in due course."